Amazon’s patent on 1-Click has expired, and the entire industry is about to get an uplift. Amazon filed for a patent on the now iconic 1-Click technology in 1997, and it was approved in 1999. Since then, companies have licensed the technology for their own use. Apple started licensing 1-click in 2000, and it has become a staple feature on Apple.com, Apples App Store, iPhoto, and iTunes.
In terms of ease of use, 1-Click was a huge step forward for internet marketing at the time it was introduced. In 1997, there was still a lot of doubt if online sales would ever take off. Consumers were still hesitant about inputting their credit card information online. 1-Click helped to make online sales a little more accepted by not having to input sensitive information repeatedly.
What 1-Click did was fairly simple. It made sales easier. The user did not have to re-enter their information every time they made a purchase. The only time that the user would need to type in their credit card information would be during registration or their first purchase. The succeeding purchases were streamlined and used the previously stored information. With faster checkouts, there is less cart abandonment and increased conversions.
Regarding actual contribution to the Amazon bottom line, one can only guess how much the 1-Click technology is worth. However, considering the effect it has on buying habits, it is easy to say that it is significant. With dozens of billions in revenue, even a list of a percent or two could equate to hundreds of millions in increased sales.
Now that Amazon no longer has exclusive rights to the technology, every other internet marketer can implement their own direct version of 1-Click. This means that every online vendor can have the same benefit which Amazon has had for the past 17 years. 1-Click may look deceptively simple, but a few percent increase in sales is significant no matter how you look at it.